The invention disclosed herein relates generally to sports wagering systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and system for accepting wagers on multiple sporting events by combining the point spreads associated with the teams selected in the events into a combination bet and determining whether the combined point differentials determined from outcomes of the events covers the combination bet.
Betting on sporting events is a popular activity among sports fans and spectators. Aside from the monetary benefits achieved from successful betting, betting increases a spectator's interest in and enjoyment received from watching and keeping track of the events as they progress. This increases interest in and viewership of the sports activity in general.
There are several types of bets which may be placed on sporting events. In one type, a straight bet, a wager is placed on a single event whose outcome is determined by selection of the winning team, a point spread, money odds, another number, or some combination of these elements. The point spread and money line are usually set by a licensed sports booking agency or licensed gambling institution to even out disparities between the teams involved in the game. For example, if a football team from New York is scheduled to compete against a football team from Chicago, and the New York team is considered a better team and is favored to win by 7 points, the point spread for the game is set as 7. In theory, while the New York team is more likely to win than the Chicago team, it is equally likely that it will win by more than 7 points than that it will win by less than 7 points or will lose.
In the example given, a bettor may place a bet on New York to beat or cover the point spread by winning by more than 7 points or on Chicago to beat the point spread by losing by less than 7 points or by winning. If New York beats Chicago by exactly 7 points, this is generally considered a tie or "push," and the money bet on the game is returned. This point spread is typically represented as New York -7 and Chicago +7, or simply "New York -7 Chicago." A sample line containing a set of point spreads for a number of professional football games is shown in FIG. 1.
A game may have two point spreads, one for each team. Thus for example in a hockey match, the point spread for the favored team may be to win by 1 goal (i.e., -1), while the point spread for the underdog team may be +1/2, meaning that the underdog team can not lose by 1 goal or more. A bet on the favorite is successful if the team wins by more than one goal, and a bet on the underdog is successful if the underdog wins or ties. If the favorite beats the underdog by one goal, a bet on the favorite is a push, while a bet on the underdog loses. FIG. 2 contains a sample line for a professional hockey schedule showing these types of point spreads.
Another type of straight bet is an over/under bet representing the total amount of points the two teams will score in the game. A bettor can bet that the teams will exceed or go over the over/under bet or go under the bet. Ties are usually considered pushes, with money returned. Over/under bets may be combined with money lines. The sample professional football line shown in FIG. 1 also contains over/under bets for each contest.
Odds may be set on the match as an alternative to or in addition to the point spread or over/under bet. These odds, represented in the money line, govern how much a bettor receives for a given wager if successful. For example, in the football game described above, the money line for New York may be -260, meaning that a bettor receives $100 of winnings for every $260 bet, and the money line for Chicago may be +110, meaning that the bettor receives $110 of winnings for every $100 bet. The money lines even the disparity between the teams with odds so that, on the whole, the gambling institution will break even or come out ahead. The difference in payout between the favorite and underdog is typically retained by the gambling institution as a commission for handling the wagers.
A money line may be combined with a point spread, in which case the bettor must cover the point spread in order to win the amount determined by the money line. Professional baseball usually uses only money lines, while professional hockey sometimes combines point spreads and money lines. A sample hockey line containing sample money lines for each game is shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, in a typical line each game has a single point spread and a money line which varies depending upon the team selected. That is, for example, if the bettor bets on Detroit and Detroit covers the point spread, the bettor receives $100 for every $140 bet. If the gambling institution maintains a $15 differential, it pays only $125 for every successful $100 bet on Colorado (the 140 money line -15).
Other types of bets involve betting on a number of teams or games together. In a parlay bet, the bettor makes straight bets on teams in two or more games, by betting based on the point spread or over/under in each game, and must win each of the selected games in order to win the bet. The amount paid for a successful parlay bet depends upon the number of games selected. A typical payout scheme is 1.6/1 for a two game parlay (i.e., a bet of $1 pays $2.60), 6/1 for a three game parlay, 10/1 for a four game parlay, 20/1 for a five game parlay, and higher payouts for additional games included in the parlay. In the case of a push in any game, that game is usually discounted and the parlay reduced to the next lower number of selections.
A teaser bet is similar to a parlay bet, except that the point spread is shifted by a certain number of points in all games included in the bet. The number of points by which the point spread may be shifted typically depends upon the sport involved. In professional football, the point spread may typically be adjusted by 6, 61/2, 7, or 10 points, while in professional basketball the point spread may typically be changed by 4, 41/2, 5, or 8 points. Using the line shown in FIG. 1 as an example, a bettor can place a three team, 6 point teaser bet on Dallas, New York, and Atlanta, changing the points spreads as follows: from -3 to +3 for Dallas, from -9 to -3 for New York, and from +13 to +19 for Atlanta. The payouts in a teaser are adjusted to account for the bettor's increased odds of winning the bet. For example, whereas a parlay of the three teams in this example would pay 6/1, the three team teaser would pay 8/5.
Aside from the prospect of increased payouts, parlay and teaser bets provide the bettor with the enjoyment of having a stake in the outcomes of several games and contemplating scenarios of results needed to win the bet. This maintains the bettor's interest in all the games included in the bet, and provides for more exciting spectating over simply making a number of unconnected straight bets, in which each bet is simply won or lost on its own.
However, in both the teaser and parlay bets, each of the teams selected by the bettor must cover the point spread in order for the bet to win. If any one team fails to cover the point spread, the bet is lost. If that team loses before other games in the bet are finished or even begin, the bettor's interest in those other games is diminished significantly. Thus, for example, professional football games scheduled for a given weekend are played at different days and times, e.g., games are played on Sunday at 1:00 EST, 4:00 EST and 8:00 EST and on Monday night. If the bettor places a three team parlay or teaser bet on games to be played at 1:00 Sunday, 4:00 Sunday and Monday night, a failure to cover the point spread by the team bet in the first game eliminates the bettor's chance of winning the bet, and thus the bettor has less interest in watching or keeping track of the scores in the later games. Over/under parlay bets have the same disadvantage.
There is thus a need for a wagering method which allows bettors to maintain increased interest in a number of games as with a parlay or teaser bet but which does not resolve a bet until after all games have been completed. The present invention provides such a method.